Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) is a quickly rising trade as extra companies migrate their operations to the cloud 

That is no shock as startups and huge enterprises realized on-premises communications options failed them. UCaaS, alternatively, integrates a number of communication channels to supply an economical communication resolution through the web.

This information takes you thru the highest UCaaS options, what they’re, and why they matter.

1. PSTN connectivity
2. Toll-free numbers
3. Auto attendant
4. Direct-dial numbers
5. Name recording
6. Name analytics
7. Cell utility
8. Desktop utility
9. Cloud PBX
10. Audio conferencing
11. Video conferencing
12. Group presence
13. Web site chat
14. Internet conferencing
15. Name flows
16. Interactive voice response
17. Display screen pop
18. Name queues
19. Omnichannel assist
20. Queue callbacks
21. Skinny shoppers
22. Unified voicemail
23. Central administration
24. Group messaging
25. On-line faxing
26. Digital workspace
27. Cloud file storage

Enterprise telephone service options

These telephone system options are important to any UCaaS platform. These enterprise voice features join your staff to the surface world and vice versa. Many UCaaS service suppliers provide these with all-inclusive pricing or à la carte add-ons.

1) PSTN connectivity

Connecting to the Public Switched Phone Community (PSTN) is a should to achieve individuals exterior of the workplace.

With out it, person’s desk telephones can solely attain others on the identical communications system. Cloud telephone programs provide each inner and exterior voice connectivity by the web.

You gained’t lose any performance you would possibly get pleasure from within the basic analog phone. Enterprise VoIP know-how converts information packets into audio indicators between the PSTN seamlessly.

2) Toll-free numbers

A toll-free quantity is a phone quantity that lets landlines name you at no cost. Extra notably, it offers your organization a nationwide presence. UCaaS service suppliers preserve the decision routing logic related to these telephone numbers.

These numbers start with 800, 888, 877, 866, 855, 844, or 833. Callers don’t must press 1 on their dialpad earlier than the quantity because of all-number calling.

Small companies use toll-free numbers to realize belief, monitor calls from advert campaigns, and route calls to specialised groups.

3) Auto attendant

We think about the auto attendant the underdog of a business telephone system. Its job is easy — it connects callers to the proper division.

If you happen to’ve ever heard “Press 1 to achieve gross sales,” you’ve used an auto attendant. This telephony function is the primary impression of your model. It directs callers primarily based on the numerical enter on their dialpad.

Many UCaaS suppliers make it intimidating to arrange auto attendants. The person expertise varies drastically, so ensure you’re feeling snug updating it.

4) Direct-dial numbers

A Direct Inward Dial (DID) telephone quantity is a telephone quantity that goes to a telephone extension in your organization.

Direct-dial numbers let individuals name customers with out traversing by an auto attendant. DID numbers present a extra personable, pleasant buyer expertise.

Let’s say you’ve gotten brokers taking calls in a contact heart. A unified communications platform distributes calls irrespective of which DID a caller dialed.

5) Name recording

The necessity to document calls and retailer them securely within the cloud continues to extend. Corporations crave full visibility into buyer calls to allow them to evaluation them later.

In the present day’s UCaaS options provide numerous name recording capabilities to enhance buyer satisfaction. This function drives accountability far past the decision heart setting.

6) Name analytics

Entry helpful name analytics like deal with occasions, velocity of reply, abandonment, and extra.

That is the place the promise of unified communications lives as much as its identify. Entry tendencies in seconds fairly than sifting by name logs and spending all day in Excel.

Enhance your outcomes with real-time and historic information. Wallboards, gamification, and sharp-looking dashboards elevate particular person and staff efficiency.

7) Cell utility

An built-in cell app stays a preferred Unified Communications as a Service function. Distributors used to incorporate this functionality on greater pricing plans, but it surely’s now a mainstay of UCaaS.

Staff can place calls and keep linked utilizing their iOS and Android smartphone. Reply calls, attend video conferences, view screens, and ship chat messages in a couple of faucets.

All these cell apps are often known as softphones. A few of its built-in UCaaS options embody name forwarding, name flipping, and visible voicemail.

8) Desktop utility

VoIP softphones additionally work nicely on laptops and desktops alike. UCaaS suppliers embody a desktop app so customers can talk on their workstations.

A unified desktop app lets customers place, obtain, and switch calls, handle contacts, and set their availability. Customers can even collaborate with coworkers by chat messaging, voice, and video calls.

9) Cloud PBX

A cloud-hosted PBX means that you can run your organization’s total telephone system on an web connection.

It eliminates the necessity for leased workplace area or specialised IP telephony tools. Cloud telephony makes it straightforward so as to add places and equip distant employees.

A cloud PBX presents unmatched scalability because it’s delivered from a number of information facilities.

Assembly and conferencing options

Within the hybrid setting the place firms have in-office and distant employees, a gathering platform is crucial. The advantage of utilizing these options in a UCaaS resolution is you could decrease prices and improve productiveness throughout the staff.

10) Audio conferencing

Host distant conferences with HD audio conferencing. Convention calls are straightforward to affix from a cell gadget or laptop, because of the pliability of VoIP.

Privateness is paramount to right this moment’s companies. Guarantee audio conferences are safe with a convention bridge that requires a passcode. Bundling your audio conferencing along with your UCaaS resolution lets customers be a part of conferences in a single click on. Company can even take part by dialing the devoted telephone quantity related to it.

Directors additionally want helpful moderation options like muting, recording, and lecture mode.

11) Video conferencing

Run productive one-on-one and multi-person video calls. They’re straightforward to arrange and supply real-time audio, chat, display sharing, and stay video.

Complete UCaaS suppliers allow you to additionally document video conferences however is likely to be obtainable for an additional value.

12) Group presence

Deep focus is treasured, and staff presence makes it doable. Unified messaging platforms show an individual’s standing, reminiscent of in the event that they’re on a name, busy, away, or obtainable.

Group presence saves time, reduces interruptions, and units the proper expectations between colleagues.

13) Web site chat

Stay web site chat helps you assist your guests and clients shortly and effectively. It’s a robust, rising channel that improves buyer expertise and will increase the shopper satisfaction fee (CSAT).

Create memorable experiences with chat historical past, availability, and quick options to your clients.

14) Internet conferencing

Host workshops, stay streams, webinars, and on-line conferences for friends not in your UCaaS platform. There’s no must obtain software program or use a sophisticated tech setup.

Get your clients and companions to affix so you’ll be able to current with ease. These safe net conferencing instruments sometimes embody display sharing, chat, and file sharing. In any case, net conferencing must render a pleasant expertise for everybody concerned.

Contact heart capabilities

The necessity to equip gross sales and assist groups with professional-grade voice and messaging turns into essential to scale. Hosted contact facilities are next-generation name facilities that combine many channels reminiscent of voice, electronic mail, and social media in a single.

15) Name flows

A name movement is a technique to design how the UCaaS platform handles incoming calls. Because of this, they’re extra succesful and simpler to arrange, even for non-technical customers. Apart from auto attendants, directors can regulate ring teams, enterprise hours, and name routing multi function display.

Name flows finish the uncertainty round what occurs when clients contact your corporation. Most significantly, it’s easy and streamlines the telephone system setup.

16) Interactive voice response

Interactive voice response (IVR) lets clients work together with the telephone system utilizing their voice. Many name facilities use it to route the inbound calls to the proper individual or for deflection.

In the present day’s IVRs can reply with real-time account information and can even carry out verification. A majority of organizations use IVRs to route callers to the division that’s finest in a position to assist.

Lighten the load in your brokers, enhance productiveness, and enhance your credibility.

17) Display screen pop

One of many methods to cut back deal with time is to show caller info earlier than answering a name. Display screen pop pulls information out of your CRM so brokers can see account worth, current purchases, and satisfaction.

This UCaaS function helps them tailor solutions and delight clients in each interplay. Unified communications options provide this performance utilizing its CRM or third-party integration.

18) Name queues

Lacking calls too usually? Name queues assist your contact heart deal with a excessive quantity of calls effectively. As an illustration, in case you obtain extra calls than brokers obtainable, the decision queue locations them in line to be routed to an agent.

Reply to name spikes with out diminishing the shopper expertise. Name queues are the perfect approach to supply bulletins and even callback invites.

19) Omnichannel assist

As an alternative of forcing clients to make use of a single contact methodology, assist them throughout a number of channels. Add electronic mail, chat, SMS, and social media to your mixture of contact channels.

Omnichannel options give you quick access to all buyer info and previous interactions. This fashion, clients by no means need to repeat themselves to totally different brokers. And with this context, your staff works asynchronously and delivers a top-notch buyer expertise.

Few Unified Communications as a Service suppliers provide customer support instruments past voice. Nextiva does.

20) Queue callbacks

The truth is that most individuals don’t need to wait on maintain. So how are you going to present a greater expertise for them? The reply is to supply a queue callback choice. Relying on the typical velocity of reply, your telephone system can provide a substitute for get a name again from the following obtainable agent.

This is a useful tactic for a contact heart to contemplate to deal with excessive name volumes. It’ll cut back the frustration of lengthy maintain occasions and shortly remedy the shopper’s subject.

21) Skinny shoppers

Name facilities usually command a hefty IT funds for PBX servers, proprietary telephony {hardware}, and trunking setups. These days are nearly behind us due to cloud-based enterprise VoIP.

Skinny shoppers are full-featured contact heart functions that solely want an online browser. These apps provide higher UCaaS options than the half-baked middleware that you just may need handled earlier than.

When contemplating potential UCaaS suppliers, make sure you attend a stay demo so you’ll be able to see it firsthand.

Sharing, collaboration, and administration

Lesser-known options of a unified communication resolution embody its collaboration and administration features. These range between enterprise telephone programs, so it helps to slender down which features are important.

22) Unified voicemail

Managing voicemails doesn’t need to be a chore. When you’ll be able to’t reply a name, let callers go away a voicemail — however get the message when and the place you need. Voicemail to electronic mail stays a favourite amongst enterprise customers.

This function works hand in hand with IP telephones, so messages aren’t misplaced, both. Customers can take heed to them on the go, at their desks, or on their computer systems.

Unified voicemail messaging enables you to obtain your messages on a distinct gadget, in your electronic mail, and even transcribed right into a textual content. This function offers customers readability and suppleness to take motion quick.

23) Central administration

Handle your telephone system features from a single, easy-to-use portal. Add or handle customers, edit options, regulate licenses, handle permissions, construct name flows, and extra.

The issue with separate communication instruments is that you’ll want to handle them individually. This ends in expensive human errors. A centralized admin portal helps you make adjustments with out uncertainty.

Nextiva’s enterprise telephone service doesn’t want technical abilities to arrange and preserve.

24) Group messaging

Maintain your groups linked and environment friendly utilizing staff chat. As an alternative of separate apps for fast messaging and conferencing, streamline them into one app.

This function means everybody collaborates, stays organized, and meets in a single place. It’s splendid when individuals work within the workplace or from dwelling.

25) On-line faxing

If you’ll want to ship and obtain faxes however don’t need an costly machine in your workplace, you’ll love on-line faxing. It’s safe and obtainable anyplace, on any gadget.

Since UCaaS makes use of VoIP, it usually ends in disconnecting your fax machine in favor of on-line faxing. This UCaaS function lets customers trade faxed paperwork identical to electronic mail.

When receiving faxes, you get digitized paperwork proper in your inbox.

26) Digital workspace

A digital workspace is like an workplace, but it surely exists on-line. It’s the place all information, conferences, duties, due dates, and conversations occur. It removes the necessity for dozens of apps — and the notifications that include them — and provides workers extra focus.

Digital workspaces can exist round working teams, initiatives, or enterprise models.

All hyperlinks, information, and conversations are straightforward to search out, so that you by no means need to waste treasured time trying to find necessary info.

27) Cloud file storage

Safe file storage is essential to sustaining belief whereas working. Some enterprise communication platforms let customers sync information from Dropbox or Google Drive.

Because it’s cloud-based, you gained’t must meddle with network-attached storage or on-premises servers. Because of this, this UCaaS function a very good match for distant employees and workers within the workplace.

This perform makes it easy to share information, which ensures licensed customers can entry firm info.

28) Third-party integrations

As Unified Communications as a Service encompasses quite a few office apps, API integrations turn into essential. Listed below are kinds of UCaaS integrations to search for and why they matter.

E-mail

Integrating your communications platform along with your electronic mail supplier presents nifty advantages.

Relying on the variety of customers, search for compatibility with Gmail, Microsoft Outlook, and Google Workspace.

This fashion, customers can share presence info, sync calendars, and make calls from their handle e-book. It’ll cut back the friction of switching between apps to get work performed effectively.

CRM

Why ought to a enterprise join its CRM to the telephone system? It may not be apparent; it’ll assist salespeople shut leads quicker. Plus, you’ll get deeper buyer insights from each interplay.

The CRM integration bridges the hole between your telephone system and your buyer information. Combine your telephones with Salesforce, Zoho, HubSpot, Keap, or Pipedrive.

This integration additionally feeds information into AI-powered contact facilities and name heart analytics.

Authentication

Permissions, entry, and safety can turn into arduous to handle because the variety of customers grows. Between hiring, exits, and mitigating threats, it’s arduous to maintain up.

Combine your telephone system with an entry administration platform like Lively Listing or Okta. With single sign-on, you’ll be able to streamline entry throughout the board.

High enterprise advantages of UCaaS

Probably the most notable advantages of UCaaS for companies embody:

• Decrease prices
• Higher person expertise
• Elevated scalability
• Strong safety

1) Aggressive pricing

The reality is that the majority UCaaS options exchange a number of enterprise apps you employ and pay for.

This consists of enterprise VoIP, staff chat, video conferencing, helpdesk, and extra. As an alternative of spending a whole bunch of {dollars} per person, lower than $50/month offers you the whole lot.

UCaaS additionally simplifies the effort of managing a dozen totally different providers. Nextiva presents the finest worth and options that companies really want.

2) Higher person expertise

An all-in-one communications platform means it turns into a single supply of reality.

As an alternative of working from disjointed apps, everybody acts on the identical view of the shopper.

With real-time information at everybody’s fingertips, they will ship a seamless buyer expertise.

3) Elevated scalability

Onboarding new workers is time-consuming. It’s even more durable while you do it remotely.

Unified Communications adjustments the sport for firms with an urge for food for development. You want minimal tech assets for worker connectivity. Obtain a cell or desktop app, register, they usually’re prepared.

As your headcount rises, you gained’t want so as to add expensive telephony infrastructure. This fashion, your assets deal with income, not putting in on-site servers. The UCaaS supplier takes care of the remainder.

4) Strong safety

Knowledge safety is a authentic concern, particularly when shifting to the cloud. UCaaS platforms provide 24/7 monitoring and encryption to maintain information protected.

Account admins can handle person settings and look at detailed utilization logs, so that you’re at all times in full management.

Verify to see {that a} UCaaS vendor has trade certifications to satisfy your necessities. Verify they supply communication instruments that adjust to HIPAA, PCI, and SOC 2.

The very best UCaaS options are inside your attain

The underside line is that firms have many causes to improve to UCaaS.

For some, it’s a approach to preserve workers and clients on the identical web page. For others, it’s a approach to streamline a number of communications apps into one. For a lot of, it may very well be the velocity of enterprise-wide deployment.

One factor everybody agrees on is that UCaaS has extra performance than conventional telephone programs. Gone are the times of letting know-how dictate how you’re employed. Unified Communications as a Service isn’t the long run — it’s now.

Stand out from rivals as a result of you’ll be able to work quicker and reply to buyer wants shortly.

If you happen to’re able to stage up your communications, try Nextiva’s cloud telephone system. Be a part of 100,000+ groups, SMBs, and fast-growing firms that already made the leap.